Fan Review Thread SPOILERS INSIDE - Part 1

[Rock Sexton]

I'm going to have to watch this film again due to the amount of criticism it's received. That said the thing that set is it apart for me is that it's a far more ambitious film. Thor was a safe movie and it felt like it was trying not to screw up as opposed to trying to be a good movie. The way I described it in sporting analogy was that it was playing not to lose rather than playing to win. A least with this film they are playing to win, but it's a rather scrappy win.

Ya, I feel the same way. That's why I mentioned in my review I really don't know what to fully think.

Some of that has to do with my anticipation levels and having followed its production every second of the way.

It set out to be a big movie. I could sense it instantly and that's what I wanted.

 

[Saturius]

Agreed and he was already pretty weak as it is before he got that major power boost from the Aether. I mean I got the impression that Frigga could have kept him at bay and maybe even defeat him on her own had Kurse not shown up when he did.

Keep him at bay? She already DID defeat him. Her sword was to his throat. That was fine though. He's not much of a fighter in the comics. But I didn't even really think he was a threat when he had the Aether either. All he really did was shoot red-black tendrils out at Thor. So much potential wasted with the character and actor.

 

[The Shape]

Also, I'm just gonna come out and say that anyone who thinks TDW is a better film than Man of Steel is crazy. MOS has it faults, many of which have been discussed to death and generally agreed upon, but the faults of TDW are more glaring. Someone said this was more ambitious than the first Thor and I completely disagree. They played it safe and gave us a fun but completely predictable movie that fits neatly into the general Marvel formula. More CGI and other-worldy elements does not equate to "more ambitious".

 

[Rock Sexton]

Also, I'm just gonna come out and say that anyone who thinks TDW is a better film than Man of Steel is crazy. MOS has it faults, many of which have been discussed to death and generally agreed upon, but the faults of TDW are more glaring. Someone said this was more ambitious than the first Thor and I completely disagree. They played it safe and gave us a fun but completely predictable movie that fits neatly into the general Marvel formula. More CGI and other-worldy elements does not equate to "more ambitious".

I have problems with both films. But I didn't scoff at T:TDW like I did at most of MoS. That movie made me feel like I was being preached to by a cliche-infested, brooding grade-schooler. That movie spent 2 hours verbally telling me the world wasn't ready for Superman.

T:TDW's problems are that it's a much bigger endeavor wrapped up in fast-pace rollercoaster film, which wasn't arranged properly in the editing room (particularly the first 15-20mins). They tried to be everywhere, but there wasn't enough time for it and the screenwriters were slightly over-matched by the nature of genre mashup.

 

[Endeavor]

Liked the movie. I thought it was better than the first.

I was pleasantly surprised by Frigga's portrayal, considering Rene was way underused in the first movie. The line about Loki getting his 'tricks' from her, awesome. It served well to give a little insight into the family dynamic. That scene with her fighting Malekith was great. If Kurse hadn't shown up she would've kicked his ass. I actually cared when she was killed and made me connect with the other character's motivations for what comes next, especially Loki.

Odin's characterization, I wasn't too pleased with. I feel it doesn't match what we saw of him in the first movie. I know in the comics he's not the nicest guy all the time but in this movie he was a hot head, and that is a total opposite of what he was in Thor 1. It was almost like a reversal of him and Thor. He was acting like what he reprimanded Thor for being when he attacked the Frost Giants. He definitely wasn't the wise Allfather we saw before. Did it break the movie? No, but it was distracting and confusing. At least for me it was.

Loki was great. Everything they did with him was awesome and Tom did an amazing job, as usual.

I saw some growth in Thor, so that was good. What I did not get is the apparent toning down of his powers. To me it felt like he depended on Mjölnir too much, like without the hammer he wasn't a real threat. That shouldn't be the case at all... You know those scenes in Avengers, when he's fighting Hulk without the hammer and holding his own and when he's fighting Iron Man without Mjölnir and is still able to crush the armor with his bare hands? Those scenes show that Thor is a powerhouse without his weapon. I didn't get that impression in this movie... Maybe I'm being too picky. I'll pay close attention on my second viewing to see if I'm mistaken on this point... But one definite gripe is that it's now official he can't fly or even levitate without the hammer. That's disappointing.

I liked the humor in the movie, but some of the scenes felt misplaced, like the subway scene. Funny as it was, it was unnecessary to interrupt everything else that was going on at that time just to show us that... Plus I was also annoyed that Thor had to take the subway and couldn't just fly there.

Overall, great movie. But there's definitely room for improvement.

Also, the Collector scene... I didn't hate it per se, but it was underwhelming for me. The set looked cheap. That huge cut-out of a blue butterfly looked cheesy and fake, as did some of the other 'collections'. This was surprising, because what little we've seen of Guardians looks great. Let's hope this scene is not a reflection of the look and feel of Guardians.

 

[Rock Sexton]

Also, the Collector scene... I didn't hate it per se, but it was underwhelming for me. The set looked cheap. That huge cut-out of a blue butterfly looked cheesy and fake, as did some of the other 'collections'. This was surprising, because what little we've seen of Guardians looks great. Let's hope this scene is not a reflection of the look and feel of Guardians.

Totally agree with you on the mid-credit sequence. The set looked like a test shot. The girl with the pink-pastel face made me feel like I was looking at a person's halloween costume. Sif and Volstagg looked so out of place it was hard to look at in a way.

The scene would've been better served showing us how they knew of The Collector in the first place. Other cameos we've had featured better flow and connectivity.

 

[warriorking]

Going to go again this evening with a large crowd, and check out their reactions...

 

[Endeavor]

Totally agree with you on the mid-credit sequence. The set looked like a test shot. The girl with the pink-pastel face made me feel like I was looking at a person's halloween costume. Sif and Volstagg looked so out of place it was hard to look at in a way.

Exactly.
Let's hope it's because it was a rushed job and it doesn't reflect GotG

The scene would've been better served showing us how they knew of The Collector in the first place. Other cameos we've had featured better flow and connectivity.

Well yes, I'd like to know more about how The Collector is even on the Asgardian's radar, and why are they entrusting him with something so powerful as the Aether. Considering Bor hid it in between worlds, why is Tivan getting it now? I'm guessing we'll be getting some of these answers in GotG though. The main point was to reveal the Aether as an Infinity Stone.

 

[Rock Sexton]

Well yes, I'd like to know more about how The Collector is even on the Asgardian's radar, and why are they entrusting him with something so powerful as the Aether. Considering Bor hid it in between worlds, why is Tivan getting it now? I'm guessing we'll be getting some of these answers in GotG though. The main point was to reveal the Aether as an Infinity Stone.

I mean I know they're going to expand on The Collector in GOTG ... but look at IM2 for example. Coulson specifically mentions in the movie he's being sent to the southwest. Then we get our credit sequence where he shows up there and finds the hammer.

In this one, it's just Sif and Volstagg randomly showing up on a set that may or may not be post-production completed, which is slightly visually jarring ......... talking to some character we had no idea existed or even alluded to. In The Avengers, they alluded to Thanos before revealing his face.

I can understand Taylor's issue with it.

 

[The Shape]

I mean I know they're going to expand on The Collector in GOTG ... but look at IM2 for example. Coulson specifically mentions in the movie he's being sent to the southwest. Then we get our credit sequence where he shows up there and finds the hammer.

In this one, it's just Sif and Volstagg randomly showing up on a set that may or may not be post-production completed, which is slightly visually jarring ......... talking to some character we had no idea existed or even alluded to. In The Avengers, they alluded to Thanos before revealing his face.

I can understand Taylor's issue with it.

Yeah, it was pretty stupid.

 

[Endeavor]

I can understand Taylor's issue with it.

Definitely.

 

[redhawk23]

I greatly enjoyed this film. It represents pretty much everything I wanted from the first Thor film in terms of scope instead of just having half of the movie limited to a backdrop New Mexico town that can be cleared out in 5 minutes.

What really drives this movie is the dynamic between Thor and Loki and both Hiddleston and Hemsworth do great work here. Loki of course is the character that will stand out but it would be a disservice to not give Hemsworth for bringing quite a bit of charisma and heart to a role that is much more of a straight man.

I liked how this film had not just a lot of action, but managed to change it up quite a bit and never lose sight of the characters at its center.

I thought the mortal characters were far better employed in this film. Jane, Selvig and even Darcy simply had a lot more to do and were a lot more involved in the central conflict and its resolution.

As great as all the other characters were employed it would have been good to have Malekith set up a bit better. Eccleston is great in most things but he simply wasn't given much to do. The Aether in particular was disappointing. It is supposed to be this ultimate destructive force and yet even when getting hit full on with it, Thor barely gets a scratch.

 

[Quasimod0]

I didn't care for the mid credits scene at all. It was sort of awkward and cheap looking. Hopefully the actual guardians movie has a better look

 

[kaijunexus]

After pondering the subject for a day or so after seeing the film, I think I can sum my main gripes up into this...

Despite the supposed gravity of the situations the film presented, the movie had little weight to it. Frigga's death was the only think that really seemed to carry any sense of depth.

Never did I get the feeling that the entire universe was in danger during the course of the movie. The whole concept of "the darkness" was never really adequately explained or demonstrated...so how am I supposed to fear something when I haven't been given a reason to be scared of it?

 

[Mjölnir]

I chose the wrong day to not read this board. An insane amount of unread posts so I doubt I'll be able to force myself to go through them to see what people thought.

Also, I'm just gonna come out and say that anyone who thinks TDW is a better film than Man of Steel is crazy. MOS has it faults, many of which have been discussed to death and generally agreed upon, but the faults of TDW are more glaring. Someone said this was more ambitious than the first Thor and I completely disagree. They played it safe and gave us a fun but completely predictable movie that fits neatly into the general Marvel formula. More CGI and other-worldy elements does not equate to "more ambitious".

I don't know if it's such a bad thing to be called crazy by someone that doesn't understand the concept of subjectivity vs objectivity.

 

[Rock Sexton]

I chose the wrong day to not read this board. An insane amount of unread posts so I doubt I'll be able to force myself to go through them to see what people thought.



I don't know if it's such a bad thing to be called crazy by someone that doesn't understand the concept of subjectivity vs objectivity.

I linked my review down in my sig if you're curious. I'm gonna go see it again on Sunday because I need to give it further evaluation.

 

[Mjölnir]

I linked my review down in my sig if you're curious. I'm gonna go see it again on Sunday because I need to give it further evaluation.

Interesting read.

It was a bit funny that you thought they went from Svartalfheim to Jane's apartment too quickly while I, if I were to state an opinion there, would say that the dinner scene was rather too long than too short.

I also notice that I think native English speakers are less used to reading subtitles than many other people (except for the poor, poor people that get dubbed movies).

Overall I liked the movie better than you did, but I agree with several things you wrote.

As for the mid credits scene (things I personally tend to take as fairly separate from the movie), I think a big part of why it worked was that Volstagg and Sif were so out of place. The cosmic part of Marvel doesn't look like the Star Wars vikings that the Asgardians have going for them, and they also played the straight man role well to the quirky Collector.

 

[tay1]

I know everyone's opinion is subjective, yada yada yada, but I just can't take people serious when they claim that Darcy was a great characyer , but yet rag on this film.

And, although this film has problems, people are being overly critical. This was a two hour movie, everything can't be covered.

 

[Rock Sexton]

Interesting read.

It was a bit funny that you thought they went from Svartalfheim to Jane's apartment too quickly while I, if I were to state an opinion there, would say that the dinner scene was rather too long than too short.

Wait, dinner scene? The transition from the cave in Svart, to Jane's car, and then immediately the next scene is them opening the door at the apartment seemed very network TV'ish based on the pace.

I also notice that I think native English speakers are less used to reading subtitles than many other people (except for the poor, poor people that get dubbed movies).

I admit I'm not used to it and it makes it harder for me to stay engaged in the actual acting because I'm too busy looking down at the words. Which is why I feel like some audience members might perceive Mal didn't have enough screen time. He did ... it's just that half of it you're looking down at the translation LOL.

Overall I liked the movie better than you did, but I agree with several things you wrote.

As for the mid credits scene (things I personally tend to take as fairly separate from the movie), I think a big part of why it worked was that Volstagg and Sif were so out of place. The cosmic part of Marvel doesn't look like the Star Wars vikings that the Asgardians have going for them, and they also played the straight man role well to the quirky Collector.

What was your rating? I might bump it up to an 8.0 .... I just need to see it again to clear up some things.

I don't necessarily mind Volstagg and Sif being so out of place ..... it's that the execution compared to previous credit stingers is slightly jarring. I'd go so far as to say in some ways the Asgardians looked more fish out of water in Tivan's lab than Thor does on Earth. In IM2 and Avengers they alluded to characters/situations you eventually see in the mid-credit. There is no mention in this film of Tanaleer Tivan even existing, nor do you ever get the sense that the Asgardians needed to separate the stones. It's just BAM, here's quirky guy and two of the lesser important characters from the film quickly dumping off an artifact that can destroy the universe.

I think they would've been better served showing some kind of discussion taking place about what to do with the stone, show them being teleported thru the bifrost, and THEN show us the interaction with Tanaleer.

 

[Ratcrawler]

Odin's characterization, I wasn't too pleased with. I feel it doesn't match what we saw of him in the first movie. I know in the comics he's not the nicest guy all the time but in this movie he was a hot head, and that is a total opposite of what he was in Thor 1. It was almost like a reversal of him and Thor. He was acting like what he reprimanded Thor for being when he attacked the Frost Giants. He definitely wasn't the wise Allfather we saw before. Did it break the movie? No, but it was distracting and confusing. At least for me it was.

Glad I'm not the only one who thought so. Everything about him was just so downgraded in this movie. The last one had me convinced that this is a character who could potentially rule an interstellar empire. This time around...he didn't even seem like a king who'd last more than half a season on GoT. He's crabby, rash, and Hell, EVEN HIS EYEPATCH LOOKED LIKE CRAP! Like he just stopped caring.

 

[squeekness]

Also, I'm just gonna come out and say that anyone who thinks TDW is a better film than Man of Steel is crazy. MOS has it faults, many of which have been discussed to death and generally agreed upon, but the faults of TDW are more glaring. Someone said this was more ambitious than the first Thor and I completely disagree. They played it safe and gave us a fun but completely predictable movie that fits neatly into the general Marvel formula. More CGI and other-worldy elements does not equate to "more ambitious".

Perhaps it has more to do with what characters you like more. Man of Steel was a bore to me yet I enjoyed Thor. But then Supes has always bored me the same way Cyclops does. It's a matter of preference. I'd rather watch Batman where the good guys aren't always so good.

 

[Marvolo]

I have trouble with the idea of TDW being better then the first film, when the character work and story are so inferior imo. And when Is say the character work is inferior, I like a lot that is there, there just isn't that much for anyone other then Loki.

Agree with this. The first film was leagues ahead of this one imo.Still can't believe this was such a mess.

 

[tay1]

No visuals of Asgard, unbelievable change of identify, even weaker villain, Darcy being annoying, unrealistic reasonings for Thor and Jane liking each other, sub-par action scenes, terrible Hawkeye cameo, and more reasons I probably forgot.

Safe to say, I enjoy this film much, much more than the first.

 

[slumcat]

Also, I'm just gonna come out and say that anyone who thinks TDW is a better film than Man of Steel is crazy. MOS has it faults, many of which have been discussed to death and generally agreed upon, but the faults of TDW are more glaring. Someone said this was more ambitious than the first Thor and I completely disagree. They played it safe and gave us a fun but completely predictable movie that fits neatly into the general Marvel formula. More CGI and other-worldy elements does not equate to "more ambitious".

I did not even like Thor Dark World but I'd say its easily better than Man Of Steel. MOS is a misconceived movie to me. Atleast Thor 2 had a very good climatic sequence.

 

[ElMariachi]

I'd rank TDW and MoS as equals. I don't think these two movies were particularly well written. Both featured excessive MacGuffins, fantasy/technobabble, and video game CGI. I thought both movies had fantastic end battles. MoS had a better villain. Thor had better supporting characters. Hated both female leads. Hemsworth and Cavill were both great but didn't really get much in terms of writing. MoS had a much better soundtrack. Thor featured one of the best characters in all comic movies with Loki.

The main thing that separates the two movies is that MoS took itself too seriously for a film featuring alien men riding around on giant dragonflies. Thor was a sort of tongue-in-cheek. Scenes with Thor riding around in a passenger seat in car, hanging up Mjolnir on a coatrack, bickering with Loki, Thor and Malekith humorously sliding down the side of the Gherkin, and trying to fly the Dark Elf spaceship like a complete idiot.

I would probably get new directors and writing teams for both movies in their sequels. Thor 3 needs a tighter plot. MoS 2 needs to get a sense of humor and stop trying to be TDK.